About us
Town on the Trail of Borderland Cultures
Project of a lifetime
Even while waiting for a miracle, it is good to do something – this quote from Isaac Bashevis Singer’s “Elijah the Slave” fully captures the idea behind Tadeusz Kuźmiński’s life’s project “Town on the Trail of Borderland Cultures”.
In 2005, the Biłgoraj XXI Foundation was established by Tadeusz Kuźmiński for his own project. The originator of the idea was not a fan of new, simple and concrete construction. The main aim of founding the town was to recreate something that had been irretrievably gone, a desire to save wooden, interesting architecture, old culture and local traditions from oblivion.
Tadeusz Kuźmiński wanted to build a “Town of Diversity”, a place for the whole of Poland, a symbol and proof that multiculturalism has functioned and can function. After all, before the First World War, Biłgoraj was a cluster of cultures. In the town, there were Russians, Poles, Tatars and Jews.
“I wish people from everywhere lived here. In creating this project, I would like to pay tribute to each of the cultures that once lived here.”
Tadeusz Kuźmiński
Initiator of the Borderland Town
Born on 15 October 1954 in Biłgoraj, died on 18 July 2020 there. From 1974 to 1975, he worked at the Biłgoraj Car Repair Plant and the Łada Housing Cooperative. In 1981 he decided to start a business, despite the difficult political situation and conditions unfavourable to private enterprise. Until 1988, he worked at the Crafts Cooperative in Lubartów, and from 1988 to 1990 he stayed in the USA. In 1991, together with a group of Biłgoraj entrepreneurs, he led the establishment of AMBRA, of which he was the main shareholder and vice-president in charge of investments. In 1998, thanks to his creativity and commitment, the company called Model Opakowania was also founded in Biłgoraj, for which he was vice-president in charge of investments from 1997 to 2000. Several hundred residents of Biłgoraj and the surrounding areas are employed at both companies.
Tadeusz Kuźmiński was an extremely colourful character. He embarked on new investments with courage. Highly ambitious, intelligent, hard-working and well-read. His library contained hundreds of books on a wide variety of subjects, but he mostly read historical books or Polish literature. He was passionate about old wooden architecture, but the greatest idea of his life was the construction of the Borderland Town. He loved the Roztocze region for its clean air and green bicycle paths, which he often used – it was his time to reflect and relax. He loved travelling, and used to say that it taught people tolerance and openness to other religions and cultures.
He visited almost every continent. He was married to Jadwiga for over 30 years and they had three children together: Magdalena, Anna and Maciej. Tadeusz Kuźmiński died after a serious illness at the age of 65.
The Borderland Town project
is being continued by
Tadeusz Kuźmiński’s children:
Magdalena, Anna and Maciej
